Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Marylebone Tavern

You've seen the giant shamrock painted across Leavenworth. Maybe you've even been drunk here before. I won't argue that this is a great place to get loaded, but there's considerable "best burger" buzz swirling around about the Marleybone too. As a pub food aficionado, a devoted lover of all things served in greasy baskets without silverware but with plenty of napkins, I had to investigate.

The menus were crusted with grimy fingerprints, the mark of patrons past throwing burgers down their gullets and washing them down with pitchers of piss beer. There were also some charming grammatical errors on the menu, but it's not about spellin', it's about cookin', right?

My appetizer Drummies were a chicken product that somewhat resembled hot wings. They were heavily breaded with something mildly spicy, and kind of uncomfortable to eat, as they were very well done and overly crispy, so much that my Rumple Minze aperitif couldn't dull the pain. Even more distressing was paying $7 for them. Fortunately, the Boner Dog provided much more cheerful amusement, mostly due to the novelty of ordering a bacon-wrapped deep fried hot dog with a goofy name. So what if our stomachs "felt weird" for the rest of the day; we ate a Boner Dog! The favorite was indeed the burger, a patty with so much girth it was almost a round ball of beef. It came cooked through, but still juicy, and with melted pepper jack that made its way into every molten crevice. The Marleybone burger can stand up to some of the city's professed tried and true favorites, and is totally worth a try. My friends were fans of the fries, but I found them a little soggy and saltless, which isn't a huge deal.

Some things were a hit, and some were a miss. Take comfort in the cheap drinks and the friendly faces and you'll forget your food wasn't that great. I do believe that's the beauty of pub food.

Drummies with Ranch--
Ow.

Marleybone Burger with Pepper Jack--
A hit

The Boner Dog:
Bacon-wrapped, deep-fried hot dog with lettuce and tomato on poppy seed bun.
I guess it was kind of sexy.